A

Apprenticed to his father, Benjamin made soap and cut wicks for candles. He hated every minute of it, wishing to be at sea and experiencing the dangers it had to offer. Having lost one son at sea, Benjamin's father encouraged him to stay on land. Soon after, he became an apprentice to his brother James who taught him how to print and make newspapers. Recently, James had been in London, and brought a multitude of books and magazines for Ben to read. Ever since he was young, Ben loved to read. So he guessed, something positive had come from being apprenticed to his brother. But it did not last long, shortly after, Benjamin ran away claiming his brother beat him.

B

Benjamin Franklin always wanted to know the science behind how things work: storms, numbers, waterspouts, ant colonies, and currents in the Ocean. One day in Boston, he attended a science show hosted by Archibald Spencer. A man who had recently come from Edinburgh. For his presentation, he brought with him brass foil, bits of thread, dried leaves, and a glass tube- about 20 inches long and sealed on both ends. Then, taking the glass he began to rub it with his hand, switching to the next when he got tired. Placing it near the objects, Ben was surprised to see the lighter objects twitching. They jumped up to the tube and immediately jumped off. The heavier items moved slowly to the glass, some of them never even reaching it.

C

Club Leather Apron, also known as the Junto, was started by Ben Franklin when he was only 21 years old. Young workingmen such as himself, would attend meetings held in the Tavern. There, they would have discussions on interesting or troubling topics. The group would read many books as well, which would lead to the Library Company years later. The company was a hit, with fifty people having signed up and paid. The money raised would be used to buy books, and members were allowed to take one home.

D

Debbie was both Ben's wife and business partner; he first met her on the streets of Boston. His pockets had been stuffed with clothing, and he carried a couple of baguettes in his arms. Somewhere in the distance, he heard a girl laugh. Soon, this girl Debbie was his wife. She was often described as short tempered, irritable, but loving and warm-hearted. She had no interest in Ben's work, often busy with her own. She sold paper, ink, parchment, goose feathers, cheese, tea, coffee, sherry, iron stoves, spectacles, and cakes of Crown Soap.

E

Electricity was something that Ben experimented with frequently. He developed a new theory for it, believing that it was a fluid. He wrote to formal colleague Collison, "Rubbing the Glass Tube gives it an excess electrical fluid- to be more precise, part of the electrical fluid belonging to the silk rubbing cloth remains on the tube, so it has more than it started with..." (Dash 36).

rubbing the tube creates an electrical charge

F

Franklin performed an experiment on a fake spider- made out of burnt cork, legs of linen thread, and a grain of lead- to prove his theory. He placed a Lyden Jar on the table, the wire coming out from one of its ends was used to keep the spider suspended in the air. Another wire was placed on the inside of the jar, and then the experiment began. As soon as the jar was electrified, the spider flew to the closest wire. Once it touched the inside wire, it became positively charged and the two began to repel each other. The spider went flying back.

G

Franklin heard about the Gulf Stream through a relative, learning that it was a river of water that flows through the Atlantic. After that, he made sure that he lowered a thermometer on the ship's side every morning. Almost eighty, he put down a good amount of information about the Gulf stream he had gained over the years.

H

Hot air balloons were quite interesting to Franklin, especially how they were made. The first balloon was made of linen, and filled with hot air created from burning straw. It was first launched in June of 1873 by the former brothers, Joseph and Jacques Montgolfier in the South of France. Quite intrigued by the mind-blowing device, Franklin went to go see it. At this time, the second balloon was launched. This time, the outside was layered with silk and instead of hot air, the balloon was filled with hydrogen gas.

I

Iroquois. These people are enemies of Britain and have been causing trouble, so Franklin has offered a solution. He has put forward an idea, an intercolonial treaty to be exact, with the Iroquois. He even drew a cartoon and published it in his pennsylvania gazette. It was a snake, chopped into eight parts to represent each of the colonies that had agreed to the treaty. Beneath it, was the phrase "Join or Die."

J

John Franklin- Ben's other brother- had recently become a postmaster in Boston. Ben tried to reach out to him through letter, which John had not read until a few weeks later. The letter he received asked if he had read the papers that he had sent on Electricity. He wondered whether he had not responded because he did not like them, or he simply didn't have the time to read them.

K

Kite flyer. Ben Franklin is most famous for his amazing experiment flying a kite in an open field in the rain, and producing electric sparks. He had taken his son, William- who was almost twenty, along with him to experience the power of science. He began to fly his kite, and for some time, nothing happened until he noticed some threads on the string trying to stand up and avoid one another. More sparks followed, and before the string had been wet thoroughly, he had collected electrical fire.

L

Lighting rods were first introduced in 1753, although Ben did not seem too pleased about it. He had been experimenting for quite awhile on lightning rods, creating intense electric charges with them through experiment. Once, he played a lightning rod that rose past the chimney with several wires that extended from the staircase to a well pump. On each end were bells, and a brass ball between the two of them. Later, he would find that the brass ball would repel the other bells instead of vibrating between them as normal.

M

Magic squares are not a creation by Franklin but by an unknown inventor whose name was forever lost in time. It consisted of one large square, which was divided into smaller squares. The way it was designed, if played right, the sums of every row, horizontal, perpendicular, and diagonal would be equal. It was later evolved into the classic game known today as Sudoku.

N

The library Company even owned a book by Sir Issac Newton called Optiks and another, called natural philosophers. This was written by scientists who followed where Newton led. His favorite book though, also available in the company, was by Roberty Boyle, an author who wrote about electricity and magnetism.

O

Oxford University volunteered to give Ben the same award he had gotten in Harvard, the degree of master of arts. He was allowed to obtain the special prize whenever he pleased. He visited the University in April and was honored in Latin for all his great achievements. For all his help in the Kite experiment, William was given the award master of arts as well.

P

Proprietors and the Quakers were always at war because of the difference in their religious views. They were seen as selfless and high-minded people who lived in luxurious homes compared to the Quakers In the beginning, the Propietors were tolerant of the Quakers, even allowing them to follow their own beliefs. But things soon changed, and the two went to war.